


A Place to Call Home

by Alaynes_Mirror



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Strangers to Lovers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, seriously your dentist will hate me, this whole fic is basically 'and there was only one bed' tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-21
Updated: 2021-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-25 08:35:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 19,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30086370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alaynes_Mirror/pseuds/Alaynes_Mirror
Summary: Kageyama frowned. Why couldn’t everyone see how brilliant this plan was? His nightshifts meant he would only ever be in the apartment during the day when his new roommate would be at work, so they would never even see each other.No stupid small talk, no awkward conversations, just extra money every month and he and this Hinata Shouyo would never have to meet. It was perfect.Alternatively:Kageyama and Hinata share a bed.Kageyama and Hinata have never met.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 13
Kudos: 121





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! I’ve seen quite a few people taking inspiration from The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary for fics, and it’s such a fantastic book, I thought the concept would work really well for Kagehina. At first I was going to upload one chapter at a time, but decided I wanted to play with the entire structure more, so here's the full thing! Enjoy~

**Hinata**

“Wait, wait. So the two of you are about to be roommates but you’ve never met, and you’re never _going_ to meet?”

“Yep!” Hinata called cheerfully, shifting the heavy box in his arms while they made their way down the corridor. 

“You know that’s really fucking weird,” Kuroo’s voice continued from behind him. 

Hinata stopped and looked back at his friends. Kuroo had a box tucked over his shoulder and an incredulous expression on his face, and Kenma… well, only Kenma's eyes and nose were visible over the lamp he was carrying. 

Hinata pouted at Kuroo. “Why does everyone keep saying that?” He turned to Kenma. “Do you think it’s weird, too?”

Kenma rearranged his grip on the lamp. “A bit.”

“Do you even know anything about him?” Kuroo snorted. 

“Of course I do,” Hinata scoffed, as they continued walking. “His name, age, and the fact that he works for some fancy international computer company.”

“So, why does he work at night?”

“Probably time zones,” Kenma said. 

“You know, only weirdos work the night shift.”

“Kuroo, you used to work the night shift.”

_“Exactly.”_

But Hinata had zoned out of the conversation, distracted by the door that now lay straight ahead of them. 

Apartment 19. This was it. 

Hinata’s stomach lurched as he came to stand in front of it. He set the box down, withdrew the shiny new key from his pocket and hesitated.

“Ready, Shouyo?” Kenma asked, his tone even softer than usual.

Hinata nodded, drawing himself up to his full, shorter-than-average height, and pushed the door open. 

Kuroo whistled. “Guess those night shifts pay pretty good though.”

Hinata’s jaw dropped. 

The apartment was _huge._ It made their old place look like a shoe cupboard. The front door opened out onto a spacious living room with shiny floorboards and dark blue walls. Every piece of furniture seemed to have a proper place and clear function within the room. Nothing was there just for decoration or to look nice. It was also incredibly clean. 

“Holy crap,” Hinata breathed, staring around.

He kicked off his shoes and dragged the box into the middle of the floor, while the other two followed him in. 

“So blue,” Kenma said.

“So _tidy,_ ” Kuroo shuddered.

“So BIG!” Hinata grinned. “You guys carry on, I’m gonna go explore!” 

He dashed into the hallway that led off from the living room, unable to hear whatever Kuroo had called in response, and found four doors waiting for him. 

Hinata poked his head round the first one, which turned out to be the bathroom. It was clean and tidy with no towels on the floor, and Hinata noted the way little bottles of shower gel and shampoo were neatly lined up on the side of the bath. Seriously, did a guy even live here? 

He ducked out and opened the door to the left, which was the linen cupboard. A boring, but very warm, discovery that had a comforting smell of clean laundry and fresh towels, which Hinata couldn’t resist breathing in. 

He turned his attention to the next room, but just as his fingers were curling around the handle, he stopped. Hinata had already noticed that the last door looked like the kitchen's, which meant this one must be the bedroom. 

For some reason Hinata felt weird seeing it for the first time while other people were in the apartment. So, resolving to come back later, Hinata instead headed for the kitchen. 

Unsurprisingly by this point in his self-guided tour, it was just as spacious and spotless as the other rooms. Just to make sure though, Hinata opened all the cupboards and drawers, but found each of them neatly organised.

“There’s got to be _some_ mess,” he muttered, yanking the fridge open.

But when he saw what was inside, a bubble of surprised laughter rose in his throat. The shelves were completely empty except for a row of milk cartons, each a different flavour. Banana, chocolate, strawberry; you name it, it was in there. Hinata stared, a grin spreading slowly across his face, as curiosity about his new roommate increased tenfold. 

Chuckling to himself, Hinata jogged back to the living room. “Guys, you’ll never guess what I found in the f— hey!”

Kuroo and Kenma looked up from where they were sat on the couch, empty cupcake wrappers in their hands, their cheeks bulging. Kenma was perched on Kuroo’s lap, a PlayStation game in his other hand, clearly having located a console nearby.

“Those cupcakes are for my new roommate!” Hinata huffed, peering into the open tin to check there were still some left.

“And what about your old roommates?” Kuroo whined. “The ones with broken backs from carrying all your crap up the stairs?”

Hinata sighed, plopping down onto the couch next to them. “Fine, you can have ONE more.”

Grinning, Kuroo plucked another from the tin, as did Kenma, and then Hinata. He was pretty pleased with how this batch had turned out; the thick icing was creamy, and the strawberries on top still fresh. 

He and Natsu used to bake occasionally with their parents growing up, yet it was only lately that he’d come to really enjoy experimenting with ingredients and trying out new flavours. But despite Hinata still just sticking to simple recipes, somehow the results were always hit and miss. Unlike his actual cooking which was always a miss, unless you liked your food charcoal-flavoured.

“Ok,” Kuroo said, as if there had been no interruptions from their previous conversation. “So you won’t see each other during the week, but surely you will at weekends?”

Hinata licked a bit of rogue cream from the tip of his nose. “Sometimes he has to work those, and I’ll probably see Natsu and stuff.”

Kuroo turned his thoughtful gaze to the ceiling, and didn’t notice Kenma steal his strawberry. “You’re actually not going to see each other at all then.” 

“Nope!” Hinata replied, popping the last bit of sponge into his mouth. 

Kuroo eyed him suddenly with a mischievous smile. “But what if he’s insanely hot, and you’ll never know?”

“Then I’ll just never know,” Hinata said lightly.

This wasn’t even a bluff, it genuinely didn’t matter to Hinata what his roommate looked like. He could be the hottest guy in the world and Hinata wouldn’t care. Well, ok, maybe that was an exaggeration. But the point was he just wasn’t bothered about being with someone at the moment. There had been a couple of dates recently, but they'd all ended with a polite smile curved around a _‘we should do this again sometime,’_ and honestly, Hinata had just been relieved.

It wasn't that the dates had been bad per say, the guys had been nice enough. But Hinata just wasn’t looking for _nice._ He was looking for fireworks in his stomach and a pounding in his heart. He wanted someone who challenged him and who he could challenge in turn. Someone who made him feel invincible, unstoppable, like they could take on the world together. He needed sparks and the same rush he got when his palm connected with the perfect spike. 

And what were the chances that person was his weird new roommate? 

Hinata was still having a hard time believing this massive apartment, with said roommate, was his new home. It would definitely be weird not having any permanent company here, but the rent was cheap and it was hard to argue with that. 

Kenma was clearly still struggling with the concept though, because he was looking at Hinata intently, his golden eyes wide, as if searching for signs of uncertainty.

“You can still stay with us if you want,” he offered.

Hinata smiled. It had been his own decision to move out after two years living together. They’d shared a place since college, but when Kenma had (finally) gotten together with Kuroo, things had started to get a little cramped in their box-sized apartment, and Hinata figured they’d be wanting space to themselves anyway. 

He’d scrolled through so many different listings before he found this one, and something about Apartment 19 had just grabbed him. Maybe it was the owner’s odd description of the living arrangements, or perhaps it was just the low cost. Either way, he had a feeling he wouldn’t be bored here.

“I’ll be fine, honest!” Hinata said, trying to sound as reassuring as possible.

“But,” Kenma began, still unsure. “What if this guy is a serial killer?”

Hinata crossed his arms. “Then it’s a good thing I’m really tough and strong so I can fight him.”

Kuroo sniggered. “What would you do, throw a volleyball at him?”

“They can be a weapon if necessary!” Hinata insisted. “Seriously, you should see the way the kids handle them in class.” He shuddered.

Kenma made a thoughtful noise at this, and padded over to the TV to put the game back, as Kuroo stood up.

“You have to admit this place is a little _too_ clean,” Kuroo mused, eyeing the sparkling furniture. “Just promise if you see any plastic sheets lying around you’ll get the hell out of here.”

Hinata promised that he would, and then before he knew it the three of them were waving goodbye and it was just him alone in the apartment. 

He looked around, hands on his hips. “This is going to be great!”

His gaze swivelled to the hallway. 

And there was still one more room left to see. 

Hinata approached the door with mounting excitement. There was always something weirdly intimate about seeing someone’s bedroom for the first time, and Hinata couldn’t wait to discover what his roommate’s would reveal about him. 

He swung the door open. But disappointingly he found that the bedroom was much like everywhere else. It was clean and tidy, and everything in it seemed perfectly placed. A large bed took up most of the space, and Hinata felt a childish impulse to jump on it and mess up the completely creaseless covers. But then he noticed a little post-it note (blue, obviously) lying on the right-hand pillow. Intrigued, Hinata walked over to read what it said: 

_'Your side.'_

Hinata laughed at the ridiculousness of the message, but it also kind of made him want to sleep on the left side, just to see what would happen. 

Yet what Hinata found strangest about the room wasn’t what was in it, rather what wasn’t. There were no photographs of any kind anywhere, no personal touches or anything to give away what kind of life was lived within these walls. Was it a happy life? Was it ever lonely?

Hinata’s friends would probably be surprised to hear that he sometimes knew what this felt like. After all, he was never short of people to see or hang out with, and he knew how much they all cared about him. Yet for some reason since graduating high school and moving away from his family, Hinata had just felt kind of untethered, like he was always running from one place to the next, never sitting still... but all he really wanted was a place to belong.

Looking around this bedroom, Hinata thought perhaps his new roommate might feel like that too.

And not for the first time today, Hinata wondered what kind of person this Kageyama Tobio was. 

**Kageyama**

“Hold on. And you’ve never even _spoken_ to each other before?”

“That’s right,” Kageyama replied, continuing to scroll through the spreadsheet open on his screen. About a minute went by before he realised his co-worker hadn’t responded, and he turned to look at him.

Yamaguchi was staring at him like he’d grown another head. 

“What?” Kageyama asked.

Yamaguchi faltered. “Well, it’s just… Don’t you want to get to know the person you’re living with?”

Kageyama shrugged. “Not really.” 

“But it’s _weird,_ ” Yamaguchi’s freckled face scrunched up, troubled. He turned to look between the partition separating his and Kageyama’s desk from the one opposite. “Tsukki, do you think it’s weird?”

Kageyama heard a sigh from the other side of his desk and Tsukishima’s head popped up, his blonde hair and glasses visible over the monitor. “Yeah, it’s weird, but so is Kageyama.”

Kageyama frowned. Why couldn’t everyone see how brilliant this plan was? His nightshifts meant he would only ever be in the apartment during the day when his new roommate would be at work, so they would never even have to see each other. This way Kageyama didn’t have to worry about trying to make uncomfortable small talk or have awkward encounters in the hallway. There would just be extra money coming in every month, and he and this Hinata Shouyo would never meet. It was _perfect._

“Maybe this new roommate is a little weird,” Yamaguchi said thoughtfully.

“Well, birds of a feather…” Tsukishima began.

“…Flock together!” Yamaguchi finished. 

Kageyama scowled at the pair of them. 

Then Yamaguchi gasped. “What if he’s a serial killer?”

“I doubt that,” Tsukishima replied, disappearing once again behind his computer. “But it’s gross you’ll be sharing your bed with a stranger.”

“Yeah, and what about your stuff?” Yamaguchi added. “Me and Tsukki have been together for three years and he still won’t even let me _near_ his telescope.”

Tsukishima’s voice floated up from behind the monitor. “What happened to the last one, Tadashi?”

Yamaguchi rolled his eyes. “We were _nine,_ Tsukki.”

Kageyama stopped listening at this point, turning his attention back to the spreadsheet. He’d already thought of the bed thing and had left a note for Hinata telling him which side was his, so that was taken care of. As for his stuff... it was just, well, _stuff._ Nothing he was particularly attached to, and neither was the apartment. It was just a place he went back to at the end of each day. 

As long as his new roommate was clean and tidy they would get along just fine. Kageyama had even left for work early today so Hinata didn’t have to rush his unpacking, and could put everything away neatly. 

He looked at the clock. 2am.

Hinata would be asleep in his bed right now. 

…Maybe this _was_ a little weird. 

Kageyama gave his head a shake. _No._ He’d made up his mind and this was going to be brilliant. No having to awkwardly make conversation, no having to pretend to give a shit about another person’s trivial problems. He could go on living life as normal, just with extra savings to put away every month. 

With this cheery thought, the rest of Kageyama’s shift went by surprisingly quickly as he processed the various calls and emails coming in from the America office. It was the usual assortment of questions about installing programs, accessing files, and even one desperately confused query about how to attach a document to an email. 

The three of them stopped for their routine coffee break in the staff canteen a little later into the shift, and joked about some of the stupid questions they’d gotten that night. Then they clocked off together at 6am.

Kageyama drew his coat tightly around him as he stepped outside with the other two and braced himself against the cold morning, the sun having not yet risen. 

“Good luck with the roommate, Kageyama!” Yamaguchi called, as he and Tsukishima began to walk in the opposite direction.

Kageyama waved in response and watched Yamaguchi rest his head on Tsukishima’s shoulder. Then he turned and set off for his apartment. 

The walk was a long one but this wasn’t ever a problem for Kageyama. He hated having to put up with sweaty, crowded journeys on buses and trains, so going by foot suited him. It was always quiet this time of day, and the clean morning air was refreshing after the stuffy office. 

He had been worried there might be an awkward overlap with Hinata leaving the apartment for work around the time he usually arrived back. But when he unlocked the front door he found the apartment as blissfully silent as ever inside. 

Taking off his coat and shoes, the first thing Kageyama noticed was the sunlight coming in through the windows, bathing every surface in a pool of gold that made the floorboards gleam and the counters flash. For a moment Kageyama just allowed the light to wash over him, enjoying the way the warmth seeped into his skin through his clothes. 

But then he surveyed the room more closely. There were a number of boxes scattered around; some still sealed but others were open with their contents lying on the floor, as if Hinata had started unpacking and then got bored or distracted. Kageyama frowned. This was not a good sign.

Feeling increasingly worried about who the hell he had let into his apartment, Kageyama poked his head round the bedroom door. There were no boxes in here though, just a big suitcase which was overflowing with clothes, clearly having been opened, riffled through, then hastily stuffed back. There was also a pair of pyjamas strewn across the bed, and Kageyama smirked. At least Hinata was definitely not a serial killer. Not if he wore cute cartoon duck pyjamas like those ones. 

The kitchen was also surprisingly tidy, the countertops still clear, though noticed there was something left out on the table. Kageyama drew nearer and saw it was a small cupcake decorated with white frosting and a strawberry on top, and next to it was an orange post-it note, not unlike his blue ones. It read:

_'Nice to meet you, roomie!!! This is for you!! - Hinata :)'_

Kageyama picked the note up, smiling slightly at the messy and erratic handwriting, as if Hinata had written it in a whirl of movement, hardly caring if it was legible. 

Then he saw the state of the sink and his smile vanished.

There were pots and pans, bowls and spoons all piled up on top of each other at the bottom of the basin. Hinata had only been there one night, how had he made so much mess? 

Still, the cake looked pretty fucking good. 

Kageyama sat down at the table and picked up the little cake, eyeing it closely. Then he hesitantly leaned forwards and licked the icing. The flavour was bright and creamy, not too sweet, which was just how he liked it. He ate the rest of it, savouring the soft texture of the sponge and the sharp sweetness from the strawberry.

Then his eyes slid back to the sink. Kageyama sincerely hoped this was not his new roommate’s natural state. 

He popped the cake wrapper in the bin, and decided not to worry about it too much.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hinata**

The blue post-it notes started appearing in force the following week.

The thing was, Hinata had tried to be tidy, he really had. But surely _some_ mess was perfectly normal? Ok, he left dirty plates out and sometimes forgot to pick his clothes up off the floor. And yes, occasionally he’d missed the bin when chucking stuff away and pretended not to notice. But so what? Everyone did that once in a while, right?

Unfortunately, though, it seemed Kageyama Tobio did not. 

This became apparent when Hinata got in from work one day to find blue post-it notes all over the apartment. They were stuck on surfaces, his clothes, the floor, even on his toothbrush (apparently Kageyama had found his suspiciously wet, but Hinata swears blind he did _not_ zone out that morning and use it by mistake). Some of the notes said things like _‘please clean,’_ or _‘please put away,’_ but others just said _‘????’_ or _‘!!!!’_

One such note was attached to the nest-like jumble of blankets Hinata had left on the couch, which made him cross. If Kageyama had even bothered to ask, Hinata had actually left it out for _both_ of them to use. It was nice and cosy in the blankets, not that stupid Kageyama had cared to find out. Grumbling to himself, Hinata took his phone out.

 **Hinata:** kageyama is driving me mad!!

 **Kuroo:** what have you done

 **Hinata:** hey!! Why do you assume it’s me??

 **Kuroo:** well… isn’t it?

 **Hinata:** no!!!

 **Kenma:** how come you’re mad?

 **Hinata:** he’s making me feel guilty for not tidying

 **Kuroo:** what?? He’s asking you to tidy up after yourself?? Outrageous 

**Hinata:** -.-

 **Kuroo:** 0:)

 **Kenma:** you can be kind of untidy Shouyo

 **Kuroo:** did you mess up his plastic sheets

 **Hinata:** he doesn’t have any!

 **Kuroo:** well I just think angering your serial killer roommate isn’t a good idea

 **Hinata:** not a serial killer!!  
**Hinata:** probably!  
**Hinata:** you two are no help

 **Kuroo:** be a good boy and go tidy your room

 **Hinata:** ughhhh

 **Kuroo:** (Φ ω Φ)

 **Kenma:** (Φ ᆺ Φ)

Hinata plopped his phone onto his chest and closed his eyes. It had been a very long day. He could still hear the shrieks and yells of the kids echoing around the gymnasium, completely drowning out the sound of his whistle. He didn’t think he’d ever seen so many volleyballs flying through the air at once. Thank god for the terrifyingly power of his manager, Daichi’s, death stare.

So who was Kageyama to tell him off, like he was a child? He had no idea how hard Hinata had to work, or how difficult it was getting up early to cycle to the school and plan lessons, plus supervise club practise at the end of the day. Kageyama just had to worry about fancy computers and not running out of his stupid milk. 

Hinata felt a sudden rush of anger and jumped off the couch. He stomped to the kitchen, grabbed one of his post-it notes and scribbled on it:

_'WILL CLEAN APARTMENT AT WEEKEND!!!!!'_

Then smacked it down onto the kitchen table. But it was no good, he still felt angry and couldn't shake the impulse to lash out at his ridiculous, annoying roommate. So Hinata grabbed the rest of the post-it notes and set off around the apartment, scribbling messages and then slapping them onto anything he found annoying. He wrote things like:

 _‘Why do you have a million cartons of milk in the fridge and nothing else??’_ and _‘who organises their DVDs by release date??’_ and _‘what grown adult owns a label maker!!’_

Once he was done Hinata felt much better, and surveyed his handiwork proudly. This would show Kageyama who he was dealing with. 

But unfortunately it didn’t stop there. 

The next day Hinata came back to find a fresh wave of blue post-its over the top of his. He dashed between each of the neatly-written, but strongly-worded, notes, his indignant splutters becoming louder with each one:

_‘Stop sneaking over to my side of the bed!’, ‘Why are you incapable of putting games back in the correct cases?’ ‘You’re supposed to put the shampoo in your hair, dumbass, not on the floor!’_

Hinata ran to the kitchen to get his pen, already thinking of how to retaliate to these outrageous and (mostly) unfair accusations. 

The rest of the week flew past in a flurry of blue and orange paper so that by the time Hinata woke up on Saturday morning, the entire apartment was completely covered in them. 

Hinata hated tidying, but he had to admit this was getting out of hand. 

Groaning loudly, he dragged himself out of bed and dressed in an old pair of sweats and a hoodie. Kageyama was staying with his parents for the weekend, so at least he didn’t have to worry about anyone breathing down his neck the whole time. 

Hinata rolled up his sleeves and looked out over the battlefield. The first thing to clear was the post-it notes. He hadn’t noticed just how much he and Kageyama had talked— or rather, bickered— through this medium since he’d moved in, and was amazed to see how many there were when he collected them all up into a bag. 

He stared down at the little bits of paper for a moment, reading snatches of the things they’d written to each other, then shoved the bag to the back of the bedroom closet. He’d decide what to do with them later. 

Next Hinata went from room to room, grabbing his games and manga and clothes up off the floor, and squashing it all into his suitcase. Then he moved onto the kitchen and washed all the dishes, even the rogue glass Kageyama had left out, because Hinata is a goddamn angel and Kageyama should be grateful to have him as a roommate. 

Finally he faced the bedroom. There wasn’t as much crap in here, though there were a lot of crumbs on the floor from Hinata’s midnight snack sessions. Kageyama had pointedly left the vacuum cleaner out, and Hinata took the hint. 

He’d just been starting to rather enjoy himself, singing loudly while he zoomed the vacuum around the bedroom, when suddenly Hinata felt it snag something under the bed.

He gave a strangled yell of surprise and hurriedly switched the vacuum off. He really didn’t want to have to explain to Kageyama via post-it note that he’d accidentally ruined one of his belongings. 

Hinata crouched low on the floor, preparing to assess the damage on whatever had gotten caught. But when he saw what it was, his eyes widened. He picked up the familiar piece of clothing and ran the nostalgic fabric through his fingers.

“Is this…?” He wondered aloud. 

Hinata was back on the floor, bent even lower to look under the bed. Then his stomach gave a lurch as he spotted what he’d been hoping to find, and drew it towards him.

He stared at the items for a moment, his brain whirring, then ran off to the kitchen. He took one of his post-it notes and quickly scribbled out a question, before leaving it on the table.

Hinata hopped excitedly from one foot to the other. He wanted the answer _now._ He didn’t want to have to wait even another minute to know, let alone two whole days. But he had no choice, he didn’t have Kageyama’s number or any other way of contacting him. 

He was going to have to distract himself otherwise he’d explode from impatience. With one last hopeful look at the note, he headed back to the bedroom to continue his vacuuming. The sooner he finished cleaning, the sooner the weekend would be over and Kageyama would be able to answer him. 

As the vacuum whirred back into life, Hinata tried to stop himself thinking too hard about the discovery and getting carried away. After all, the items didn’t necessarily even belong to Kageyama; they could be a friend’s or a family member’s. 

But if they _were_ his…

Hinata felt a rush of excitement, and grinned as he imagined what Kageyama’s answer could be to the question on his post-it note: 

_‘Do you like volleyball???’_

**Kageyama**

Kageyama didn’t like volleyball. 

He _loved_ volleyball.

It was probably the thing he enjoyed most in the world. Tsukishima and Yamaguchi were also into it, that was how they’d started talking in the first place, after Kageyama had overheard them recounting the results of a local match. But even their interest was only mild compared to Kageyama’s. He’d just never met anyone who felt the same way about the sport as he did.

But since talking to Hinata, he thought he finally might have.

Hinata’s discovery of Kageyama’s old jersey and volleyball was what had started it, and over the following weeks they had exchanged dozens of notes discussing their favourite court positions, describing the best sets they’d seen, and debating who had the ability to go pro in their local area. 

Hinata was still messy and kind of a dumbass, his pyjamas were ridiculous and he didn’t agree that setter was the best position to play… and yet slowly, as the days and weeks went on, Kageyama found himself weirdly looking forward to seeing new notes from him. And even though Kageyama had never heard or spoken to his roommate, Kageyama realised that Hinata was _loud_. His presence seemed to fill the whole apartment, whether it was with his mess, the smell of his baking, or his bright orange post-it notes with their excessive exclamation marks. 

And, despite his previous thoughts on having a roommate, Kageyama found he oddly didn't mind this. On the contrary, he’d often catch himself smiling at Hinata’s dumb comments or jokes, and grudgingly admitted he kind of enjoyed seeing the way his handwriting became messier the more excited he was about something. 

“Earth to Kageyama, Kageyama come in.”

He was abruptly brought out of these Hinata-shaped thoughts by Tsukishima’s bored voice.

“What?” Kageyama asked, not looking up from the blank screen in front of him.

“Our manager’s doing the rounds so quit spacing out.”

“Whatever,” Kageyama muttered, giving his mouse a shake to wake his computer up, and opening an email at random. 

The sender was asking how to access a shared folder and had ended her email with a smiley face. This brought Kageyama’s thoughts immediately back to his roommate. 

Earlier, Hinata had revealed that he'd been a middle blocker at school ‘despite his size,’ which was an intriguing comment. 

Neither of them knew how the other looked, but this confirmed Kageyama’s recent theory that Hinata was quite a bit shorter than he was. He’d thought this since he began noticing the way the showerhead was always adjusted lower in the mornings. But how short was short? 

Kageyama had a sudden mental image of a tiny person jumping forwards to block and then getting caught in the net.

“Kageyama, are you ok?” Yamaguchi asked.

“Um, yeah, why?”

“You were smiling at your email.”

“Gross,” Tsukishima droned from the other side of the desk. 

Kageyama frowned, his face heating up. “No I wasn’t. Not— at the email.”

“Was it your new roommate?” Yamaguchi prompted. “What’s his name, again?”

Kageyama cleared his throat. “It’s Hinata,” he said, experiencing a strange thrill at saying his name. “Something just— reminded me of him.”

Yamaguchi swivelled in his chair to face Kageyama fully, eyes wide. “Wait, so have you guys met, then?”

Kageyama faintly heard Tsukishima stop typing, clearing listening in.

Kageyama hesitated. “No. We kind of… pass notes to each other.”

Yamaguchi's face lit up. “That sounds so fun!” He turned to Tsukishima. “Tsukki, shall we start sending notes?”

But Kageyama saw Yamaguchi's eager expression turn into one of puzzlement as he looked at Tsukishima. “What is it? Oh, you want us to check our chat? Why are you chatting us anyway?”

Kageyama checked his too, and found a backlog of messages from Tsukishima.

 **Tsukishima, Kei:** Stop  
**Tsukishima, Kei:** Stop it  
**Tsukishima, Kei:** He’s coming over  
**Tsukishima, Kei:** Stop talking both of you  
**Tsukishima, Kei:** Oh my god  
**Tsukishima, Kei:** Ok it’s too late  
**Tsukishima, Kei:** Yeah he’s right behind you

With a sudden feeling of dread, Kageyama noticed a face reflected in his computer monitor. He turned to find their manager staring angrily back at them.

For the next five minutes Kageyama and Yamaguchi kept their heads bowed as they endured a tirade of abuse from their manager about how they were ‘wasting valuable company time’ and ‘treating the workplace like a social space.’ Kageyama kept his eyes on the floor the whole time, trying to keep his anger under control. He _never_ got into trouble. He barely even spoke to Tsukishima or Yamaguchi usually during a shift, and one of the only times he did he got yelled at? It was so fucking unfair considering how much the rest of the department messed around.

Eventually the scolding came to an end, and an awkwardness descended over the three of them until it was time to clock off. 

They headed to the cloakroom together in silence, and Kageyama had shrugged on his dark parka before he noticed that Yamaguchi hadn’t moved. He was just staring at his own coat, lips drawn tightly together, his eyes shining. Tsukishima also saw this and gave a small sigh, before wordlessly putting his arms around his boyfriend and drawing him close.

Yamaguchi dipped his head into Tsukishima’s chest. “I hate being told off,” he mumbled.

“I know,” Tsukishima said, his voice low. 

Kageyama felt strange watching this tender moment between them, and looked away. When they broke apart Yamaguchi was smiling softly, and Tsukishima took his hand as they all headed for the doors. 

Yamaguchi might be feeling better, but the anger was still rolling off Kageyama in waves, even after his long walk back to the apartment. He shrugged off his bag as he walked in the through front door and figured he’d change and go for a run to cool off, since there was no way he could sleep like this. 

But as he entered the bedroom he was instantly distracted by an orange note lying on his pillow. He sat down next to it and read:

_'How was your day, roomie?? :) bet you showed those computers who’s boss!!'_

Kageyama snorted. 

He’d explained his job several times to Hinata, but it was clear he still didn’t understand what he did. Kageyama grabbed a pen and post-it from the nightstand, and sat back against the pillows. 

He didn’t know why he did it. After all he’d never wanted to confide in someone before or share his worries with another person, but suddenly he was telling Hinata all about what had happened at work and how unfair it was. Maybe it was seeing the way Yamaguchi’s expression had softened with Tsukishima’s arms around him… or perhaps it was the sight of that small orange note waiting for him. 

The next day when Kageyama got back from work, there was a blueberry tart left out on the kitchen table next to another note. It read:

_'Your boss sounds like an ASSHOLE!!! I made this for you so you’d feel better! :)'_

Kageyama slid into a chair and took a bite of the tart. Instantly his mouth was filled with the bittersweet juice of the berries, the light cream and thick pastry.

_‘I made this for you…’_

Kageyama read those words over and over as he ate, and felt a gentle warmth kindling in his stomach. It spread through his body and rose into his throat, burning like the sun.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hinata**

Hinata woke up as he normally did these days, sprawled out on Kageyama’s side of the bed. He wasn’t even sorry anymore. The sheets were nice and neat here and the pillows soft and plump, unlike with Hinata’s horrible lumpy flat ones. 

Plus, it was a little weird to admit, but the longer Hinata lived at the apartment the more he was starting to associate the clean and comforting smell of Kageyama’s stuff with _home._ He rubbed his face into the pillow, sighing contently, and allowed himself one more minute of staying curled up under the covers before he had to get ready for work. 

Eventually, though, when Hinata finally pulled himself up, he knew instantly something was wrong. His head and neck felt heavy and stiff, and the air outside the duvet made him shiver. 

“No, no, no, I don’t wanna have a cold!” Hinata whined, rubbing his warm forehead. 

Usually Hinata hated being ill because it meant you couldn’t join in with fun stuff like volleyball, and while this was still true, there was also now a more pressing matter. He and Kageyama hadn’t talked about what would happen if one of them had to stay home unannounced, and this could make things really awkward. Plus, Hinata would be damned if the first time they got to meet in person would be with him all gross and sick. 

Determined not to let this happen, Hinata hauled himself out of bed and headed unsteadily for the bathroom. He just needed to make sure he didn’t have a fever (working with kids and all that). He blinked in the bright fluorescent light above the mirror when he entered the room, and began rummaging through the cupboards and drawers until he found what he was looking for. 

He popped the thermometer under his tongue and continued getting ready for the day, trying not to chew on it absentmindedly as he changed into his kit and stuffed his things into his bag. Finally, the thermometer gave a cheerful beep, and Hinata was relieved to see that while his temperature was slightly higher than normal it wasn’t a fever. Thanking the powers that be, Hinata quickly wolfed down some breakfast, brushed his teeth and dashed out the door to retrieve his bike.

By the time he was halfway to work, Hinata was starting to feel a bit better and the cool morning breeze soothed his warm cheeks. He hovered above the seat as he pedalled, taking big gulps of the fresh air. Hinata loved cycling at this time of day. The surrounding areas always looked best in the blue early morning haze when everywhere was still half-asleep, and the only sounds were his bike wheels whirring and the birds chirping overhead.

He saw a slow trickle of people walking up ahead and leaned forwards on his bike, preparing to do what he did every morning: try to see if any of them were Kageyama. He’d started this routine after finding out his roommate walked to and from work. Hinata knew it was pretty stupid since he didn’t have a clue what Kageyama looked like, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that if their eyes met, somehow he would just _know_ it was him.

But unfortunately, today it was just an elderly man walking his dog and a few clusters of high school girls. Hinata sighed as he passed the last group, and made a mental note to ask Kageyama more about his commute when he got back that evening. 

There was no time to feel too disappointed though, because Hinata was now approaching his favourite part of the ride. His heart leapt as he began to speed up the familiar slope, working his legs hard as he edged up to the top of the hill. Then, just as he tipped down the other side, Hinata lifted his feet from the pedals and a wild laugh tumbled from his mouth as he soared down the slope, the wind whipping at his hair and clothes.

The momentum seemed to propel Hinata all the way past the school gates, into the main building and through the doors of the faculty office, until he plopped down at his desk. He was just starting to register how dizzy he was, when cool fingers were pressing gently to his forehead and large brown eyes surveyed him from under a sweep of silver hair. 

“Hinata, are you feeling unwell?” Sugawara asked, looking concerned.

“Suga-san, you’re psychic!” Hinata gasped. “How did you know?”

His fellow teaching assistant stepped back, hands on his hips, his head cocked to the side. “You didn’t do that thing you always do when you come in.”

“What do I do?”

“You jump onto your seat and spin around on it before you start working.” 

Hinata folded his arms, pouting. “I definitely don’t do that.”

“You do,” a second voice chimed in, and Hinata turned to see Daichi enter the office, sliding the door shut behind him.

“Hinata’s not feeling well,” Suga told him. 

“I’m _fine!_ ” Hinata whined. 

Daichi narrowed his eyes, assessing him.

“I don’t have a fever or anything, I promise!” Hinata added, with his most winning smile.

“Ok,” Daichi finally relented. “But if I catch you sneezing even once you’re going straight home to rest, ok?”

Hinata gave him an eager salute, and the three of them grabbed their registers, printouts and plans, and headed over to the gymnasium. As they crossed the sunny courtyard he noticed the way Suga’s hand brushed Daichi’s, and hid a grin.

Hinata had been in this job for almost a year now and he loved it. Getting to play volleyball every day for a living was just about the best thing in the whole world, and it meant a lot that he could help to teach kids how to play, since he himself hadn’t been able to much in middle school. 

Working with kids also seemed to come to Hinata naturally, which he thought was due to helping out with Natsu while growing up, though Suga joked it was because Hinata’s height made the kids feel like he was one of them. They certainly seemed eager to listen to him most days, especially the students in the volleyball club, who always watched his demonstrations with wrapt attention.

It soon became clear, though, that today was not going to be one of those days. The first year class was already out of control by the time they tumbled into the gym, and it quickly went downhill from there. The only upside was that Hinata’s cold was completely forgotten in the blur of whistle-blowing, Daichi’s laser beam glares and Suga’s hasty cries of _‘duck!’_ as rogue volleyballs soared overhead. 

Yet despite the chaos, and even as an abandoned left shoe whistled past Hinata’s ear, he found that, as usual, a great deal of his thoughts were taken up by Kageyama. Hinata had baked so much since moving in that he’d almost completely run out of ingredients. But he couldn’t stop himself, he loved knowing how much his roommate liked whatever he made for him, and the grumpy, self-conscious way Kageyama wrote out his thanks.

However, while he still felt an excited rush whenever a new blue note appeared, Hinata was not exactly known for his patience, and having to wait every time for Kageyama’s replies was incredibly frustrating and made Hinata feel restless. 

He was also starting to become curious about things he would only get to find out by seeing Kageyama in person. Like, what kind of expression did he make when he ate the desserts? Did he take his time savouring each mouthful or did he eat it all in one go? What flavours made his mouth water? What made him the happiest?

Hinata didn’t even really know why he was so interested in his roommate, especially since on the surface they were complete opposites; Suga had once said that Hinata’s sunny energy could probably power a solar panel, whereas Kageyama was most likely the kind of person who wore a hoodie to the beach. They also bickered a lot, though instead of finding this annoying, Hinata found he weirdly enjoyed it (something that had made him nervously Google if this made him a masochist), like it was an inside joke for just the two of them when they fought and teased and called each other names.

It was in these moments that Hinata would wonder most what Kageyama looked like. Dark hair seemed to suit him, because of his gloomy personality, and sometimes there was a scowl or the curve of a teasing smile on his shadowed face. But really, he was a complete mystery. 

The enigma that was Kageyama continued to take up much of Hinata’s thoughts until the school day was over and he was cooling down with Suga and Daichi in the gym. Hinata was attempting to balance on one leg to stretch his calf muscles, but this was proving difficult since his light-headedness had started creeping back into focus. 

“How’s everything going with your apartment?” Daichi asked, rolling his shoulders, his voice echoing in the empty gym. “It’s been a while now.”

“Just over a month, I think?” Hinata replied, wobbling slightly as he switched to the other leg. “Feels like way longer though.”

“And what’s your mysterious roommate like?” Suga asked, sat on the floor with his legs out in front of him, fingers stretching towards his toes. 

Hinata pondered this. “Well, he loves volleyball and he’s sort of grumpy and cross most of the time. He’s stupidly tidy and he likes the colour blue. His favourite thing to drink is milk, and he always folds his clothes away properly, even though no one makes him do it.” He shrugged. “But it’s kinda hard to get to know him properly.”

“It sounds like you know him pretty well already,” Suga chuckled. “Is he straight?”

Hinata would be lying if he said he hadn’t wondered this himself on more than one occasion recently. They certainly seemed a lot closer lately, and it was hard to shake off the feeling that there was an unmistakeable _something_ between them.

“Hmm,” Hinata began, frowning in concentration. “He’s kind of hard to read. But sometimes we’ll be talking and it feels all—” Hinata hopped into a star jump. “ _BWAH_ , you know?”

“Oh? Does someone have a crush?” Suga teased with a smile. 

Heat rushed to Hinata’s face at these words, and his heart quickened in his chest. “But isn’t that really weird? Can you like someone without knowing what they look like?” 

Daichi rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I’m not sure you can.”

Suga scooted nearer to Daichi and prodded the back of his knee with his shoe. “You’re saying you couldn’t if it was me?”

Daichi turned a rare shade of pink at this, and looked away. “Fine. Maybe. If it was you.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Suga grinned mischievously. “Want to grab a drink some time?”

“Suga, I’m literally your boyfriend.”

Suga sighed happily. “I know, life’s pretty great.” He looked up at Hinata. “I think it is possible, but maybe you need to speak to him in a way that’s not the post-it notes, to figure out how you feel?”

“Why don’t you ask for his number?” Daichi suggested. “Though if I remember correctly, Suga actually just took my phone, put his number in and told me to call him.”

“I vaguely recall doing that,” Suga chuckled. “Hinata, you could always give him _your_ number? That way the ball’s in his court.” His eyes wandered around the gym. “So to speak.”

Hinata’s eyes lit up at this analogy. “That’s a great idea! I can pass the ball to _him._ ”

And with this exciting idea in mind, Hinata pedalled extra hard as he cycled back to the apartment later that evening. He was definitely starting to feel very woozy now though, and several times had to readjust his position on the bike to stop himself wobbling off. 

As soon as he got through the door Hinata shoved his coat and shoes aside and went in search of a hot cup of tea. But when he entered the kitchen he was surprised to see several items waiting for him on the table. There was a large bottle of water, a pack of flu tablets and a plate of apple slices, still fresh. A blue note was attached to the bottle:

_‘Make sure you take the medicine first and DON’T go to work tomorrow if you’re ill, dumbass. Also I put the thermometer away. I will let you off because you’re sick.’_

A huge balloon of happiness was inflating Hinata from the inside, and a wide smile spread across his face. He scooped everything up from the table and took it all into the bedroom, where he settled himself on the bed. As instructed, he took the medicine first with plenty of water, then munched his way through the apple slices.

The ridiculously cute combination of Kageyama’s grumpy yet thoughtful note along with the things he’d left out was just too much for Hinata. He squeezed his eyes shut, overcome with a longing to really _know_ Kageyama. He felt Kageyama’s absence more than ever in that moment, and the emptiness of the apartment gnawed at him like a hunger. Was this what it meant to like someone?

He took his pen and a new orange note from the nightstand, and for once Hinata took great care writing his message out. It was important that Kageyama could read this one. 

**Kageyama**

Kageyama stared at the series of digits that formed Hinata’s phone number on the orange note, accompanied by his usual smiley face.

He was sitting on the bed with his knees tucked under his chin, a position he’d been in since he came home from work ten minutes ago. 

Fuck, he was nervous. 

It wasn’t like he didn’t _want_ to talk to Hinata in that way. In fact, if he was being really honest, that was all he wanted to do. But he’d been told before how awkward and selfish he could be, and what if Hinata ended up thinking that way about him too? It was the reason using notes suited him so much; it kept a safe distance between them, stopped Hinata getting too close.

But fuck, Kageyama wanted to be closer. And Hinata had never recoiled or withdrawn from Kageyama’s words, even when they’d argued. Most people had simply turned their backs on Kageyama before whenever he told them what he really thought, but Hinata was still just right _there._

And he’d left his number out for Kageyama, because he _wanted_ to talk to him. Maybe Hinata wanted to be closer too?

Kageyama flattened his hair nervously. First things first. 

Carefully, making sure he hadn’t read any of the digits wrong, Kageyama added the number into his phone. He tapped out Hinata’s full name, then— after hesitating for a moment— added a sun emoji after Hinata’s name and saved it to his address book.

He took a deep breath. 

**Kageyama:** Hey— _delete_  
**Kageyama:** Hello— _delete_  
**Kageyama:** What’s u— _DELETE_

_Fuck._ Why was this so hard? 

Finally, after a few more minutes deliberating, he settled on the least offensive greeting known to humankind. 

**Kageyama:** Hi

He clicked send, then dropped the phone onto his bed as though it were a live grenade, and endured a full minute of swirling anxiety before there was a _ding._

Kageyama scrambled to pick the phone back up, his heart somersaulting as Hinata’s name flashed up on the screen. He opened the message.

 **Hinata:** hey!!!! Is this my roommate?? :D

Kageyama grinned. _He texts just like he writes._

 **Kageyama:** Obviously  
**Kageyama:** How are you feeling

 **Hinata:** LOADS better, thanks for the medicine and apple!!  
**Hinata:** gahh I can’t believe we’re texting!! I’m so exciteddd

 **Kageyama:** Aren’t you always excited?

 **Hinata:** pretty much!!!

 **Kageyama:** Are you even ok to be messaging while at work?

 **Hinata:** it’s fine, I’m just doing admin this period, plus my manager is super chill  
**Hinata:** ok no he’s not but he’s teaching right now so it’s all good!!  
**Hinata:** did you eat the cookies??

 **Kageyama:** Don’t get into trouble, dumbass  
**Kageyama:** But yeah I did

 **Hinata:** WOO!! :D Which baked thing has been your favourite so far?

 **Kageyama:** The one with the blueberries

 **Hinata:** is that because they’re blue?? ;-)

 **Kageyama:** No, dummy  
**Kageyama:** Wait is that why you thought I’d like it?

 **Hinata:** …  
**Hinata:** no…

Kageyama snorted with laughter, and settled himself more comfortably in bed. He wanted to ask Hinata more about that, but wasn’t sure how. His thumbs hovered uncertainly over the keys.

 **Kageyama:** Why do you make them?

 **Hinata:** I love baking!! it’s so fun, not like cooking which takes AGES and needs loads of ingredients and is never worth it anyway

 **Kageyama:** I meant why do you make them for me?

He watched nervously as the three little dots appeared, showing Hinata was typing. His response seemed to take a bit longer this time.

 **Hinata:** well cake makes people happy and I like thinking it makes you happy :D

Kageyama’s stomach swooped and hid a smile in the rim of his sweater, even though there was no one there to see it.

It was surprisingly easy speaking to Hinata like this, and they continued texting for most of the morning. It was so easy that when Kageyama looked up a bit later he was surprised that Hinata wasn’t just right there sitting next him while they talked. It made the apartment feel strangely empty.

He realised then what he wanted to do and, before his nerves could catch up with his typing, he tapped a new message to Hinata.

 **Kageyama:** The teams we talked about last week

 **Hinata:** yessss they have such cool line-ups!!

 **Kageyama:** They’re playing in a match on Sunday  
**Kageyama:** Want to go?  
**Kageyama:** With me?

 **Hinata:** I’d lobe to go!!!1  
**Hinata:** *love!!

Kageyama felt a rush of nervous excitement, sending his heart racing. 

_They were going to meet._

**Kageyama:** Cool  
**Kageyama:** I have the night off on Saturday so will stay here

 **Hinata:** no worriesl! I’ll go to Natsu's and meet you down at the stadium the next day? :D 

**Kageyama:** Ok, match is at 4pm

 **Hinata:** woo!!  
**Hinata:** hey, Kageyama?

 **Kageyama:** Yeah?

 **Hinata:** I’m really excited to meet you :) 

**Kageyama:** Dumbass  
**Kageyama:** me too


	4. Chapter 4

**Hinata**

Hinata was going to meet Kageyama. 

In just 48 hours they would see each other in person for the first time. 

Hinata squealed, he just couldn’t help it. It felt like someone had shook up a can of soda in his stomach and then let it loose, excitement fizzing around his whole body. He hopped up and down on his stool, trying to get rid of excess energy.

Out of the corner of his eye he then saw the door of the bar open and Kuroo and Kenma walked in. They spotted Hinata immediately (hard not to with him waving his arms like a windmill), and headed over to the table.

Hinata pushed their drinks towards them as they sat down, and took a long sip of his own from a colourful straw.

"What's the exciting news?" Kenma asked, his hands curling round his glass.

Hinata span around on his stool. “We're meeting up!”

Kuroo raised his eyebrows. "You and your roommate?"

Hinata nodded enthusiastically, still smiling.

“What if he’s ugly?” Kuroo asked, wasting no time whatsoever. 

“He’s _not,_ ” Hinata scowled, feeling protective over his roommate. Then he relaxed into a shrug. “But it doesn’t really matter what he looks like because he’ll still be Kageyama, you know?”

“Cute,” Kuroo grinned. “Where are you meeting?” 

Hinata beamed. “We’re seeing a volleyball match at the old stadium.”

“Does he know about the first time you went there?” Kenma asked, with a slight smile.

“If you mean the balcony incident then no, he doesn’t,” Hinata jutted his chin out. “Besides, not like I actually fell off.” Then he sat up straighter. “But if I did I’ll bet Kageyama would have understood, he’s just as excited about volleyball as me!”

“Dear god, there’s two of them,” Kuroo muttered into his drink.

“So, is it a date?” Kenma asked.

Hinata paused mid-sip. Up until this point he had successfully stopped himself from entertaining the idea that it might be a date, but his heart leapt at the renewed possibility.

“Do you think it is?” Hinata breathed, his eyes shining. 

“That’s why I’m asking you, Shouyo,” Kenma replied, a small laugh shaking his voice.

Hinata cradled his face in his hands, knowing full well he had a big dumb grin on his face. “Oh my god, what if it is? What should I wear?” 

Kuroo laughed. "Well, you don’t want to overdo it if it isn’t, so just act cool.”

Hinata looked back and forth between his friends, almost vibrating with excitement.

“I don’t think he knows how to do that,” Kenma murmured.

“Well, have another drink,” Kuroo said hastily, pushing another glass towards him.

Hinata took it with both hands and gulped it down. By the time the glass was empty, Hinata was starting to feel calmer. Much calmer. Like, really calm. In fact he felt kind of sleepy and his body hummed in contentment. 

“I’m going to text Kageyama,” he said brightly, taking his phone out. 

“Is that a good idea?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Hinata replied, already beginning to tap out a new message, smiling fondly at the little milk bottle emoji next to Kageyama’s name.

“How are you drunk already,” Kuroo sighed. 

“I’m not drunk!” Hinata scoffed. “I’ve had like two drinks.”

“Shouyo, you’re holding up three fingers.”

“Not important.”

 **Hinata:** hello!!!!

 **Kageyama:** Hi  
**Kageyama:** Isn’t it past your bedtime  
**Kageyama:** You have training tomorrow

 **Hinata:** I do but no I am drinking!  
**Hinata:** well apparently I’m drunk  
**Hinata:** which is FALSE!!!

 **Kageyama:** Dumbass, how much have you had to drink?

At this point Hinata was completely distracted by Kenma, who had tried to sneak his drink away, claiming it was to stop Hinata from embarrassing himself. But Hinata managed to snatch it back and quickly downed the rest before it could get taken away again. 

By the time he got back to his phone, Hinata was starting to feel extremely woozy, and had to blink several times in order to focus on what Kageyama had asked him. He poked his tongue out while he concentrated on replying.

 **Hinata:** like nothing!!  
**Hinata:** I’ve only had like two drinks so it’s all good!  
**Hinata:** kind of wish you were here though :( 

“Hey, Hinata!”

Hinata looked up from his phone to see Kuroo pointing at the bar. “Another round?”

Hinata was seeing Kageyama in two days time. And with this wonderful, glorious thought, it felt like nothing could go wrong. 

“Ok, just one more!”

**Kageyama**

“Is it a difficult game?”

Kageyama glanced up from his phone at Yamaguchi, who was looking at him curiously. The two of them and Tsukishima were in the canteen, drinking their coffee extra slowly in an attempt to put off the moment they’d have to go back to work. 

“Game?” Kageyama repeated, confused.

“Oh, you looked like you were trying to work something out,” Yamaguchi explained.

“It’s probably just his roommate,” Tsukishima sighed, scrolling on his iPad, headphones loose around his neck. 

Kageyama looked back at his phone, resuming his earlier contemplation. “I think he’s drunk because I can’t tell what he’s saying.” He scanned back over the last thing Hinata said.

 **Hinata:** lsikee nrkthing!!  
**Hinata:** I’ve ontkt had like two dridnkss sos its aKal good!!!!!!  
**Hinata:** Ksined odd wish ylie were held tjtoih :( :( :( 

Yeah, he had no idea what any of that said. 

Yamaguchi laughed. “He drunk texted you? Can I see?”

Kageyama held out the phone and Yamaguchi leaned in to read, his freckled cheeks illuminated by the light of the screen. 

“He’s definitely drunk,” he grinned. “Is that a little sun next to his name?”

Kageyama snatched the phone back, flushing. He’d forgotten about the emoji. 

This made even Tsukishima look up, his interest clearly piqued. “Oh?” He smirked. “Hey, does Hinata have social media?”

“I don’t know,” Kageyama replied stiffly. 

“You never thought to look him up? We literally work for an IT co—”

“No, I just didn’t care before,” Kageyama interrupted, which was perfectly true. 

Before the two of them had started exchanging notes he hadn’t bothered looking Hinata up to investigate his appearance, since it just hadn’t mattered to him. Of course, now, thoughts about what Hinata looked like were almost constant. But even so, the idea of finding out through social media just felt _wrong._ Like it would be cheating somehow. 

Kageyama put his phone back in his pocket. “It doesn’t matter anyway. I’ll find out on Sunday.”

“Sunday?” Yamaguchi repeated curiously. 

Kageyama cleared his throat, feeling embarrassed. “We’re meeting up.”

“Like a date?” Tsukishima prompted.

Kageyama hesitated. He hadn’t really thought about what to call it. Did Hinata think it was a date? Did Hinata even like guys? “No. Maybe. I don’t know.”

Tsukishima drew his iPad closer, index finger poised to type. “What’s his full name?”

Kageyama eyed him suspiciously. “Hinata Shouyo, but he probably doesn’t even have social m—”

“Found him,” Tsukishima interrupted, the light from the screen reflecting in his glasses.

Yamaguchi shuffled closer to his boyfriend to see. Then his eyes grew wide as he looked from the screen to Tsukishima, and they exchanged a knowing smile. Kageyama hated it when they did this. It was clearly some kind of weird facial communication system they’d come up with when they were kids and never grown out of.

And those smiles were very ominous right now.

“What is it?” He demanded, wincing at the slight note of anxiety in his voice. 

“He’d probably be good for you, Kageyama,” Yamaguchi beamed. 

Kageyama looked at him incredulously. “What does that mean?”

“A perfect match,” Tsukishima grinned.

But before Kageyama could question the two of them further, all around them came the sound of chairs scraping against the floor as their co-workers got to their feet, yawning and stretching as they prepared to head back to work. Tsukishima and Yamaguchi followed suit, ignoring Kageyama’s panicked look.

Yamaguchi put a reassuring hand on Kageyama’s shoulder. “It’ll be great. Don’t worry.”

But Kageyama _did_ worry. He worried so much that when he tried to chuck the rest of his cold coffee down the sink he accidentally splashed it all over his shirt, and cursed loudly. 

He just wanted to get home, take a hot shower, and try not to think about whatever it was about Hinata’s appearance that had made his colleagues look so gleeful.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hinata**

Hinata was sprawled on a merry-go-round.

It was going round and round very fast, making him feel dizzy and sick.

“I want to get off,” he groaned.

After a few attempts to drag himself up off the revolving surface, Hinata finally managed to get himself into a sitting position.

Then he realised he was in bed.

But the spinning was even stronger now, and Hinata clutched his head, trying to stop the blood from pounding in his ears.

He also felt disgusting; all hot and sweaty with the sickly remnants of alcohol stuck to his skin, and his mouth was dry and papery. How much had he drank last night? Everything was a complete blur after that third round. 

He pictured Kuroo's laughing face and cursed him into oblivion. 

Hinata fell back into bed, thinking he’d sleep it off, and threw an arm over his face to shield himself from the sunlight streaming in through the window.

Sunlight.

Hinata’s eyes snapped open.

_Oh my god._

Hinata grabbed his phone from the nightstand and felt his soul leave his body. 

It was 8am. He was supposed to have left for training half an hour ago.

_Oh my god!!_

Hinata leapt out of bed, groaning as the thumping in his head surged, but he couldn’t slow down. There was no way he could turn up to work like this. He was going to have to shower first. 

He stumbled into the hallway, peeling off his sweaty t-shirt and tugging off his shorts as he went, until he was left just in his boxers. He staggered to the bathroom door and yanked the handle down. 

When he stepped into the room, Hinata’s stupid first thought was that he couldn’t use the shower, because there was someone already in it. 

Not just someone. 

The most beautiful man Hinata had ever seen in his whole life.

He was tall. So tall that the showerhead grazed the top of his dark hair, which looked shiny and silky, slicked back with water. The man’s face was tilted upwards with his eyes closed and lips parted, as if just enjoying the sensation of the hot water on his skin.

One of his toned arms was braced on the wall, long fingers curled against the tiles, and his other hand was absentmindedly running shower gel over his toned chest. Water was cascading down his tanned torso, droplets catching in the dips and grooves of his prominent muscles and sharp hips, running down, down...

At this point it took every ounce of self-control that Hinata Shouyo possessed in his body to drag his eyes back to the man’s face.

“Kageyama?” He croaked stupidly.

And then the man opened his eyes. 

Forget sparks. Forget those tiny, pinpricks of static that only lasted for a second. When their eyes met it was like a goddamn bolt of lightning straight down Hinata’s spine, and his whole body _fizzed._ Electricity was coursing through Hinata’s veins, and he felt rooted to the spot by those sharp blue eyes, unable to tear his gaze away.

For a moment longer they just stared at each other in shock, then (in a very delayed response) Kageyama cried out and yanked the shower curtain over himself, almost pulling it clean off the rail in an attempt to cover himself. 

Hinata also started yelling and jerked his hands over his eyes as if he’d been blinded (which he kind of had been). He scrambled backwards and hastily located the door handle before flinging himself out and slamming the door behind him. 

His heart was pounding.

Kageyama.

That was _Kageyama._

 _That_ was _Kageyama._

No. No goddamn way. That was a sexy, drunk illusion, there was no way that was Kageyama. It couldn’t be. 

But… this was his apartment, wasn’t it? And he’d responded to his name, hadn’t he? 

_Oh god._

_Kageyama._

Hinata saw flashes of those soft, parted lips and the almost erotic look on his face as the water ran down the contours of his athletic body. Hinata groaned, feeling even more heat rush to his cheeks. 

He was now also…

He looked down.

_Crap._

Hinata waddled back to the bedroom as fast as he could, making peace with the fact that he was just going to have to turn up to training very late and stinking of alcohol. Surely meeting your devastatingly good-looking roommate for the first time, while he was in the shower, counted as extenuating circumstances?? 

The three of them sat in silence.

“That’s… wow,” Daichi said slowly, still processing. 

Suga nodded, his lips pressed firmly together.

“You can laugh if you want,” Hinata mumbled, his chin resting on the table where they were sat. He felt utterly miserable. 

As soon as he’d arrived at training that morning he’d tried to tell Daichi and Suga what had happened, but intense embarrassment had made his thoroughly-detailed explanation shrivel up into a squeak. Clearly fearing for Hinata’s sanity, Daichi had offered for the three of them to grab lunch afterwards so he could tell them the full story. 

After a few false starts he’d finally managed to do this, and was now faced with a dazed look from Daichi and a trying-not-to-laugh expression from Suga.

“So, what did you do next?” Daichi asked.

“I got the hell out of there!” Hinata whined. “Thank god I'm staying with Natsu tonight so I don’t have to face him.”

“But, Hinata,” Suga began tentatively. “Aren’t you meeting up tomorrow?”

Hinata sighed, closing his eyes. “He probably doesn’t want to go anymore.”

He felt like he’d ruined everything. He’d been so excited at the prospect of meeting Kageyama properly for the first time. But now…

Hinata winced as he remembered the look of sheer horror on Kageyama’s face.

“Why don’t you just explain to him what happened?” Daichi suggested, taking a sip of his iced tea.

Hinata groaned. “And say what? ‘Sorry I walked in on you while you were showering, didn’t immediately leave and stared at your naked body for way too long’?”

Daichi smiled slightly. “Maybe don’t use those exact words.”

“You didn't mean to do it though, Hinata, it was an honest mistake,” Suga said reassuringly, then he paused. “What was he like, anyway?” He added, clearly trying to sound casual. 

Hinata pictured Kageyama’s tanned, muscular body and parted lips. He could feel his face growing hot at the memory, and took a sip of his milkshake to cool down.

“That bad, huh?” Suga chuckled. “Well, couldn’t you just even the score?” 

Hinata continued drinking, not following Suga’s meaning, then choked when he did. “I can’t do that!” 

Suga shrugged cheerfully. “I’m just saying, that’s one way to make things less awkward.”

Daichi raised an eyebrow. “Suga, not everyone is as inappropriate as you.”

“Oh?” Suga grinned at him. “Don’t you like it when I’m inappropriate, Daichi?”

Hinata smacked his hands on the table. “Can we get back to my problem, please? Besides, he’s already seen… stuff.” 

Suga turned back to him, eyes widening. “Wait, what were you wearing?”

Hinata fiddled with the sleeve of his hoodie. “Not much.”

“A robe?” 

“A bit less than that…”

“Well, we've heard about your cartoon duck pyjamas,” Suga smiled. “So at least it wasn’t those.”

Hinata sat up quickly. “My pyjamas!” He wailed. “I hadn’t even thought of that!”

 _Oh god,_ how many times had Kageyama seen those stupid childish pyjamas now? He must think Hinata is such a _dork._

Somehow he was only just realising that the Kageyama in the shower and the Kageyama he shared an apartment with were the same person. That god of a man was the one who had cut up apples for Hinata, who loved volleyball, who called him a dumbass and told him off for using all the milk. Hinata’s cakes had been tasted by those soft lips, his notes read by those dark blue eyes.

And what had Kageyama thought when he’d seen Hinata for the first time? Was he disappointed? Had he been expecting someone taller, or better looking? Hinata knew he wasn’t _ugly_ per say, but he’d never exactly been a confession-magnet at school or been asked out much since as an adult. And compared to Hinata’s boyish looks, Kageyama was… 

Well, this would have been the moment for Hinata to start freaking out about how completely and utterly perfect Kageyama was, but as things stood…

“It doesn’t matter now anyway,” Hinata sighed, his shoulders drooping. “He probably hates me.”

Suga put a comforting hand over Hinata’s. “Hey, he won’t hate you.”

“He probably just feels awkward,” Daichi added.

But Hinata wasn’t convinced. Normally he’d make some brownies or something to try and show how sorry he was, but he didn’t think there was a cake big enough for this. Kageyama might not accept it anyway. He probably wouldn’t even show up tomorrow.

But…

If he _did…_

Hinata would get to see him again.

Their first meeting hadn’t exactly been what Hinata thought it would be... but, with a nervous excitement, he also couldn’t help thinking that tomorrow couldn’t come quick enough.

**Kageyama**

Kageyama was in shock.

He was lying spread-eagled on the bed, still just in his towel. He couldn’t even bring himself to care about the way the water was seeping through to the covers beneath him. His brain seemed to have _jammed,_ utterly unable to process what had just happened.

After the coffee incident at work he’d been so desperate to clean himself up that he’d headed straight for the shower as soon as he got in. He hadn’t bothered locking the door, after all, why would he? He was supposedly alone in the apartment as usual, and he’d felt so relaxed letting the hot water ease up all the knots and tension in his stiff shoulders. He hadn’t even heard the door open, but what had come next…

Kageyama moaned and covered his face with his hands. Fuck, this was so embarrassing. He wasn’t exactly a virgin, but he’d never been so completely and utterly _naked_ in front of someone else before, and of course it had to be Hinata who saw him.

_Hinata._

Kageyama had tried to picture him a thousand different times, and yet nothing he’d imagined could come close to reality. Everything about Hinata was perfect, from his blushing cheeks right down to his pink toes. 

And his hair. His fucking _hair._ It was so orange, so bright, so perfect for Hinata that Kageyama now couldn’t imagine it being any other colour. It had been all stuck up at odd angles, so stupid and ridiculously cute. It made Kageyama want to stuff his hands into it. 

He groaned and rolled over onto his stomach. But then he was picturing Hinata lying there beside him, grinning sleepily with his hair all messy.

Kageyama mashed his face into the pillow. 

How the hell was he supposed to sleep knowing he’d been sharing a bed all this time with a Hinata who looked like _that?_

How could he even function after seeing Hinata’s slender, toned torso with those obscenely tight boxers hanging low off his hips. Those fucking boxers. They’d hidden _nothing,_ and had meant every inch of those strong, yet soft-looking thighs had been exposed to Kageyama’s gaze.

Unable to stop himself, Kageyama imagined the weight of those legs around his neck, as he pressed openmouthed kisses along the insides of Hinata’s thighs, feeling the heat radiating from between his legs. Kageyama’s lips would trace where thick muscle dipped into soft, subtle skin as he listened to the sounds of Hinata’s gasps and moans beneath him.

Kageyama growled in frustration. 

_No._

__

__

_No, no, NO._

What the fuck was _wrong_ with him?

He needed to stop having such perverted thoughts and get some sleep if he was even going to be able to speak to Hinata tomorrow.

How would Kageyama even look him in the eye? Those big, brown eyes…

 _“Fuck,”_ Kageyama groaned into the pillow. 

It was going to be a long day.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hinata**

Hinata was nervous. _Very_ nervous.

He was pretty sure his ass was sweating and it felt like there was a volleyball wedged in his throat. He was stood in the middle of Natsu’s hallway, checking his appearance in the mirror for the fifth and final time. 

He patted his hair experimentally, but unsurprisingly it just popped straight back up again. He’d also spent way too long deciding what to wear before finally settling on shorts and a hoodie, paired with his favourite white converse. After all, Hinata didn’t want to make it look like he was trying too hard. Kageyama might not show up, and even if he did this could still just be two dudes hanging out as friends and watching a game together...

It just so happened that one of the guys had seen the other (incredibly attractive) guy naked in the shower and now couldn’t stop thinking about him.

Hinata watched as his traitorous cheeks lit up in the mirror, and gave them a slap. He had to get it together. Be cool, be casual. He grabbed his bag and headed out of the front door, running along the walkway then taking the outside stairs two at a time.

He was just about to start making his way down to the stadium when he heard a window opening above and Natsu’s head popped out.

“Give this to him, nii-chan!” She called, and tossed something small and square out of the window.

Hinata scuttled back and forth below, trying to predict where the thing would fall. He managed to catch it, and saw it was a milk carton. 

"Ha ha," Hinata smirked, swinging the carton back up into Natsu’s outstretched hands.

Natsu pouted (something she’d definitely picked up from him). “You said he liked milk." 

"Yeah, _way_ too much, so don't enable him!" Hinata sighed, grinning. "Thanks for letting me stay!”

“Let me know how it all goes!" She called back with a wink, and closed the window.

Hinata felt a rush of excitement as he set off down the road, trying not to bounce along as he went, knowing it would lead him to Kageyama. 

Natsu’s place wasn’t too far from where he and Kenma had lived during college, so he knew the way to the stadium pretty well, given how regularly they used to sneak off to watch games and avoid revision. It felt good to be going back, and the sunny afternoon helped to raise Hinata’s spirits even higher. 

As he got nearer the stadium he began to notice more people heading in the same direction wearing team merchandise, and had to physically restrain himself from joining in with the snatches of conversation he overheard about the players. 

But just as he was really starting to get carried away by all the excitement, Hinata saw signs for the match come into view, and suddenly it all became very real. His stomach contracted painfully with a wave of nerves, as he was hit once again by the very real fear that Kageyama might not turn up. This fear only became stronger with each step Hinata took, but he forced himself to keep going. 

The main path up to the stadium was just round this next corner. 

Hinata’s heart was hammering against his chest as he approached the turning. 

Inconveniently his body seemed to have taken this moment to forget how to walk, his legs jerky and stiff, and were you supposed to keep your arms by your sides while you walked?

Then suddenly Hinata was taking a deep breath and turning the corner.

And there he was. 

Kageyama was wearing black jeans with a grey sweater, and his expression was distant, apparently lost in thought as he looked out over the grass in front of the stadium. A slight breeze ruffled his dark hair and he smoothed it down, a gesture that Hinata found so freaking cute he thought he might combust. 

He stayed behind the wall and allowed himself a moment to just drink in the sight of Kageyama. His clothes looked good on him; the dark jeans showed off his long legs, the sweater accentuating his lean torso. It appeared as though Hinata wasn’t the only one to notice Kageyama’s looks however, because a few girls slowed down when they passed him and giggled. But to Hinata’s delight Kageyama seemed completely oblivious to this, and Hinata felt a weird satisfaction knowing _he_ was the one Kageyama was waiting for. 

“Kageyama!” Hinata called, waving his arms above his head. 

Kageyama looked round, and Hinata’s stomach somersaulted as their eyes met. Kageyama seemed self-conscious about this enthusiastic greeting, but raised a hand in response.

Hinata raced down the path and came to a stop right in front of him. “You came!” he said, a little breathlessly.

Kageyama raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t I ask you?”

“Oh yeah, I guess you did,” Hinata laughed.

Kageyama watched intently as Hinata's chuckle relaxed into a smile, and Hinata was just about to ask if something was wrong, when Kageyama spoke again. “Ready?”

Hinata punched the air. “Let’s go!”

He felt jittery as they made their way over to the main doors, and couldn’t help sneaking glances over at Kageyama every few seconds. He was even more beautiful up close, with the graceful curve of his neck, his strong jaw, and the slight hollow of his high cheekbones. Clearly Hinata’s glances had not been very subtle because Kageyama soon caught him.

“What?” He asked, sounding slightly unnerved.

“Nothing,” Hinata replied quickly. “You just look like… _you._ ”

Kageyama snorted. “What does that even mean?”

“Well, am I how you thought I’d look?” Hinata asked curiously.

He watched a slight blush appear on Kageyama’s cheeks as he opened the door. “You’re shorter.” 

Hinata shook his fist in mock-anger. “Are you making fun of me?”

“I didn’t say it was a bad thing, dumbass,” Kageyama mumbled. “I just didn’t notice yesterday…” He trailed off, looking awkward. 

Hinata thought he’d better get this next bit out of the way, because he had to say _something._

“Um, Kageyama,” he began tentatively. “I just wanted to say that I’m really sorry about what happe—”

But he didn’t get to finish because Kageyama had whipped round and slapped his hands over Hinata’s mouth, his cheeks now completely red. _Cute._

“Stop!” Kageyama said, sounding flustered. “It’s fine, let’s just—not talk about it.”

Ugh, how was just having Kageyama’s hands over Hinata's mouth making his heart go crazy? Hinata tried not to squirm at his touch and nodded to show he understood, and Kageyama let go. 

The lobby was already quite busy by this point, filled with groups of people laughing and chatting animatedly about the match, while others slowly made their way to the court. The two of them started following the crowds heading that way, when they passed a bar and Hinata stopped.

“I’m gonna grab a soda, do you want one?” He asked, walking over.

As he got nearer though he realised just how tall the bar was, and lamented about how easy it was for him to rest his head comfortably on the counter. He looked up at Kageyama mournfully. 

He grinned. “Impressive.” 

Unsurprisingly the attendee spotted Kageyama first, so he ordered the drinks. Hinata got his wallet out to pay, but Kageyama waved his hand away.

“I’ll get it,” he said. “You’re always baking me stuff.”

Hinata beamed up at him. “Ok, but next time it’s on me!”

Kageyama looked taken aback by the mention of a ‘next time,’ but nodded in response. Once they had their drinks they made their way over to the stands, letting the push and pull of the crowds guide them through the doors after they’d had their tickets checked.

They sat down in one of the lower-middle rows, and Hinata bounced in his seat, craning his neck to look around eagerly, taking it all in.

“You’re going to fall off your chair,” Kageyama warned.

“I’m fine, look!” Hinata said, hopping up and down even more enthusiastically. “I won’t f—”

But suddenly he was slipping on the plastic, and would have landed straight on his ass had Kageyama not snatched his arm out, catching Hinata round the middle and pushing him firmly back in his chair.

Hinata’s skin tingled from where Kageyama’s strong arm had braced against his chest, and his heart was pounding. “Thanks,” he breathed, a little dazed.

Kageyama frowned. “Just be more careful, stupid.”

At that moment the stands were plunged into darkness and the main lights above the court flooded the arena. The crowd erupted into applause, and Hinata was instantly caught up in the cheers and yells around him. He and Kageyama exchanged identical grins, clapping enthusiastically along with everyone else as the teams made their way onto the court.

Hinata had never experienced anything like it. When he’d seen games with people before it had always felt like they were somehow watching a completely different match to Hinata, whose reactions were so over the top compared to theirs. But with Kageyama it was like they were watching with one pair of starry eyes, and often they would exchange exclamations or comments at exactly the same time. 

But sometimes Kageyama would spot things Hinata hadn’t, and point them out before they’d even happened. 

“He won’t make that,” Kageyama said, arms folded, watching the server launch himself into the air, his hand swinging back, ready to hit the ball.

“Yes he will!”

“There, see? It’s out.”

Hinata heard the referee’s whistle just as Kageyama had predicted. “What are you, some kind of volleyball genius?”

“No,” Kageyama scowled, then he reached out and tussled Hinata’s hair roughly. “I’m just not a dumbass like some people.”

Hinata laughed, trying to hide the way his spine had arched at the feel of Kageyama’s fingers in his hair, leaving behind a tingling sensation.

Because despite how excited Hinata was to be watching the match, he was having a hard time concentrating with Kageyama beside him. At some point during the second set he had developed a routine of looking away just before something big happened on the court and instead watched Kageyama’s reaction to it, which was somehow even better. 

They cheered together, yelled together, and finally they were on their feet together, clapping loudly as the teams bowed low to each of the stands, the game finally over.

“Their setter was incredible,” Kageyama called over the roar of the crowd, still clapping.

“Yeah but that shorter blocker was the best!” Hinata yelled back. “In the last set with that save he made? He was all BWAHH and then WHAM!” Hinata illustrated this by hopping into the air and making a swiping gesture with his hand. 

“Can't you speak Japanese?” Kageyama smirked.

“It’s not my fault you’re not smart enough to understand me,” Hinata huffed, following Kageyama as their row began to file out into the main queue. 

It was much busier leaving the arena than it was entering it though, and everyone was packed tightly together as they squeezed into the corridor leading to the lobby. Hinata tried to stay close to Kageyama but it was hard with so many people pushing around them. Then a bunch of teenagers were moving between them, and they were separated.

“Kagey—” Hinata began to call out, but suddenly a group of people barged in front and blocked his view completely. 

Hinata felt a stab of panic at finding himself alone and stretched up as high as he could to try and see where Kageyama was, cursing his height. But then shoulders were parting, people were turning, and he was right there waiting for Hinata to catch-up.

“Dumbass, don’t get lost,” Kageyama said, grabbing Hinata’s hand.

Hinata felt warmth spread up his arm from Kageyama’s firm, reassuring grip. His gaze stayed on the back of Kageyama’s head as he pulled Hinata along, parting the crowd around them.

They eventually reached the lobby, and when they made it to the main doors, Hinata felt the physical loss of Kageyama’s warm weight as he withdrew his hand to open the door.

They headed out together into the cool evening, and Hinata eyed Kageyama’s hand, plotting how he could naturally take it again. As they walked along, Hinata tried to casually bump their fingers together but it was weirdly difficult to do on purpose. He then tried reaching out a few times, but lost his nerve at the last moment and contented to swing his arms back and forth like a pendulum.

“What are you doing?” Kageyama asked, one eyebrow arched. 

Hinata swung his arms above his head, as though stretching. “I'm just still pumped about the match! How are you even going to work after this?”

Kageyama seemed confused. “I’m not working tonight either. Didn’t I tell you that?”

Hinata stopped walking, eyes wide. “Oh, I don’t think so.”

Kageyama stopped too, and they looked at each other awkwardly, realising what this meant.

“I can probably stay with Natsu again?” Hinata offered, though willed for this suggestion to be turned down. 

Kageyama frowned. “No, dumbass, don’t be stupid. It’ll be fine.” 

Would it be fine? Hinata thought he was in danger of possibly exploding with excitement. A whole night together in the apartment, just the two of them.

“Let’s make curry!” Hinata grinned.

“You want to cook?”

“Well, yeah,” Hinata replied, hands on his hips. “You can be the assistant and I’ll be head chef.”

Kageyama shoved him. “ _You’re_ the assistant. I know how often you burn shit from all the pans you leave out.”

“I only did that once last week!” 

“And whose food caught fire in the microwave because it had foil on it?"

Hinata pouted. “You weren’t supposed to know about that.”

“If you put your crap in the bin properly then I probably wouldn’t.”

They continued like that all the way back to the apartment, and even as they prepped the curry ingredients. The two of them got halfway through cooking, when they realised they probably should have been paying closer attention to the recipe.

“Is it supposed to be that colour?”

“Hell if I know.”

They peered into the pot, eyeing their creation warily. Supposedly this was the sauce, but it looked more like yellow water. Hinata gave it a hopeful stir with his spoon, but it just brought a few rogue carrots to the surface.

“I don’t think we should eat that,” Hinata said darkly.

Kageyama brought a tin down from the shelf above the fridge and popped it open. “We could just finish these?”

Hinata looked over to see he was referring to the remaining pieces of flapjack Hinata had made a couple of days ago. 

“Good thinking!” He grinned, and snatched the tin off Kageyama before scampering off into the living room. 

He plopped himself down onto the couch and took a bite of the biggest piece, enjoying the sweetness of the honey and the chewy texture. 

Kageyama followed him into the room, scowling. “Hinata, you’ll get crumbs all over the couch.”

“Will not!” Hinata frowned, his cheeks full of flapjack. 

Kageyama narrowed his eyes. “If I see one crumb on there, you’re doing the apartment cleaning for a whole week.”

Hinata swallowed. He’d just have to eat too quickly for the crumbs to fall. “Challenge accepted.”

Seeming satisfied, Kageyama came and sat next to Hinata. He chose the next biggest piece from the tin and took a bite.

“Is it good?” Hinata asked eagerly.

“You know it is,” Kageyama replied, taking another bite. 

Hinata grinned happily and took a second piece, settling himself more comfortably on the couch with his legs spread out, one foot tucked under his butt.

Kageyama eyed his new position. “For someone so tiny you take up a lot of room.”

Hinata jutted his chin out defiantly. “I am small but mighty.”

He then watched as a little piece of Kageyama’s flapjack fell from between his long fingers and landed on his sweater. Without thinking, Hinata darted forwards and popped it in his mouth. 

“You said no crumbs!” Hinata grinned as he chewed, pleased with how red this had made Kageyama. How was it possible for someone to be hot beyond belief _and_ cute at the same time?

But then suddenly Kageyama was leaning towards him, and Hinata’s mind emptied of all thought as Kageyama lowered his head until soft breath tickled Hinata’s hand. Kageyama bent forwards and took a bite of Hinata’s flapjack right from his fingers. 

Kageyama sat back and swallowed the piece, smiling in a satisfied way at Hinata’s reaction which was trying to remember how to breath. His heart was racing from their sudden proximity and the sensation of Kageyama’s mouth so close to his skin. Hinata knew he was being creepy and weird by staring, but he couldn’t help it. All he could think about doing was climbing into Kageyama’s lap and licking the sweetness from those lips, tasting the honey on his tongue. 

The longer Hinata looked at Kageyama, the more Kageyama’s smugness seemed to waver into something less certain, more nervous. 

“We should probably go to bed,” he said stiffly. “You’ve got work tomorrow.”

Hinata nodded jerkily, trying not to lose his mind at the mention of bed. But he thought he’d better at least make it look like he wasn’t some total pervert (though he definitely felt like one).

“I can sleep on the couch!” He blurted.

“Don’t be an idiot, it’s our bed,” Kageyama frowned. He seemed not to have realised what he’d said because he suddenly looked flustered. “I-I’ll stay here and clean up if you want to go change.”

“Ok!” Hinata replied, quickly swallowing the rest of the flapjack and sliding off the couch, ready to head for the bathroom first. 

His insides were a scrambled mess of nerves, and he was trembling so badly that he got toothpaste all over the sink before finally managing to get a bit on his toothbrush. He did his teeth as fast as he could, trying to calm himself down by listening to the oddly soothing sound of Kageyama in the kitchen washing the pots and pans. 

Then Hinata hurried over to the bedroom and shut the door behind him, without bothering to turn the lights on. He would _not_ wear those stupid duck pyjamas tonight. He crouched down by his suitcase and rifled through his clothes. Unfortunately, though, he really did only have cartoon pyjamas. Cursing his childish taste, he put on a pair that was only mildly embarrassing (decorated with little crows) and jumped into bed. 

The blinds were still open and moonlight was bathing the room in a soft silver glow. Hinata wiggled his feet nervously as he heard Kageyama flicking the kitchen lights off, followed by the sound of the bathroom door opening and closing.

Hinata’s heart was like a hummingbird in his chest while he waited for Kageyama, his limbs tight with tension. It wasn’t like he was expecting or even wanting anything to happen, but just knowing how close they would be was making his whole body tingle with anticipation. 

He heard the bathroom light click off and the door open. Then there were footsteps and yellow light was sweeping across the bedroom as Kageyama appeared in the doorway, wearing a navy t-shirt and grey pyjama pants. 

He seemed to pause on the threshold, looking uncertain. Then he caught sight of Hinata and his face relaxed into a grin.

“Nice pyjamas,” he said, switching the hallway light off and closing the bedroom door. 

“Thank you,” Hinata replied in a dignified voice. 

Kageyama pulled the bedding back and got in beside Hinata. They wriggled down under the covers so they were lying on their sides facing each other, their features illuminated by the pale moonlight. 

“This is weird,” Hinata grinned nervously.

Kageyama frowned. “You saying it’s weird makes it weird.”

Hinata shuffled closer towards him. “Doesn’t this remind you of school and staying over at friends’ houses?”

Kageyama chewed his lip. “I didn’t really do that.”

“Oh,” Hinata replied. “How come?”

Kageyama shrugged, but didn’t elaborate.

Hinata then saw his chance to find out the thing he was most curious about. 

“What about _adult_ sleepovers?” 

“Adults don’t have sleepovers, stupid.”

Hinata took a steadying breath. “I mean like with girls… or guys.”

Even by the dim light, Hinata could see a Kageyama’s face turn pink. “Dumbass, don’t ask embarrassing questions.”

Hinata pouted, drawing the covers up to his mouth. “Just asking,” he mumbled.

Kageyama sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed so his back was to Hinata, who panicked. Was his question too far? He opened his mouth to say sorry when Kageyama cleared his throat.

“It’s guys, for the record,” he said stiffly, not turning round.

Hinata’s heart was beating so fast he was sure it was making the mattress vibrate. “Oh, cool. It’s… guys for me too.” 

This made Kageyama look back over his shoulder at Hinata. “Hm.”

“Interesting,” Hinata replied softly.

Then Kageyama got up, and Hinata watched his dark silhouette cross the room to the window. He reached up to close the blinds, causing his t-shirt to lift and reveal a sliver of toned stomach. 

Hinata swallowed. 

The blinds flicked down, plunging the room into darkness, and immediately there was an unmistakeable shift in the atmosphere. The air around them crackled with electricity, and without his sight, Hinata’s other senses seemed to heighten in the darkness. He heard Kageyama’s soft footsteps and felt the mattress dip as he climbed back into bed, the cool taste of minty toothpaste hanging in the air.

Hinata was suddenly struggling to breath, painfully aware of every shift of Kageyama’s body next to him in the dark, every rustle of sheets, every soft exhale. How close were they lying together? 

Painfully slowly, carefully, Hinata brought his knee up and inhaled sharply as it connected with Kageyama’s. It was the barest touch between them, yet it was making Hinata’s head spin. Was Kageyama's heart racing just as fast? 

Everything inside Hinata was screaming at him to move forwards, to close the distance between them. He imagined reaching out to Kageyama and their mouths pressing together, hot and wet and breathless in the dark, hands brushing aside thin t-shirts, fingers tracing bare skin, legs sliding together.

How would Kageyama react? Was he thinking the same as Hinata? Was Kageyama waiting for him to make the first move, or was he just trying to sleep? 

The air between them was stuffed with things that Hinata wanted to say and do, but uncertainty kept him where he was, unable to do anything other than listen to the pounding of his heart and the sound of Kageyama’s soft breathing beside him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to keep this chapter just for Hinata because it was getting a little long... Onto Kags!


	7. Chapter 7

**Kageyama**

Kageyama opened his eyes the next day to find himself alone, and for the first time in all the years waking up in this apartment, this morning he really felt that; alone. He was facing Hinata’s side of the bed, and wondered if he’d fallen asleep gazing at him through the dark.

Kageyama ran a hand over his face. Last night had been interesting to say the least.

It had taken him hours to get to sleep because of how painfully aware he’d been of every one of Hinata’s fidgety movements, the brush of their knees together almost making Kageyama shudder. His arms had physically ached from not pulling Hinata towards him and running his hands through his hair, touching him, _kissing_ him. It was a testament to how irresistible Kageyama found Hinata that he thought of doing this while he was wearing those ridiculous pyjamas. 

Kageyama huffed in frustration. 

Still, there was no point dwelling on it, he’d done the right thing. It seemed as though Hinata had fun yesterday, if his constant smiles has been anything to go by, but it also seemed likely that Hinata was just like that every day anyway. It also didn’t mean he shared the same feelings as Kageyama, and there was no way in hell he was just going to jump him in order to find out.

Kageyama rolled onto his back with a sigh, and then the faint smell of coffee made him turn to see a mug on the nightstand, steam rising off it in spirals. There was a note attached:

_‘Yesterday was so fun!!! Let’s do it again!! :)‘_

Kageyama bit back a smile. He sat up, gently detached the note and took a sip of the coffee, made just how he liked it. He leaned his head back against the pillows and closed his eyes, hands wrapped around the warm mug. 

As crazily intense as last night had been though, it was the bright sound of Hinata’s laugh that was burned into Kageyama’s mind the most, and the way it seemed to light up Hinata’s whole face. Kageyama found he’d had to try very hard not to openly stare whenever this happened, and hoped Hinata hadn’t noticed. 

He also kind of saw what Tsukishima and Yamaguchi had meant about Hinata probably being ‘good for him,’ though Kageyama suspected being around Hinata’s sunny smiles would be good for anyone. 

Kageyama was just thinking back to earlier in the day and the feel of Hinata’s hand in his, when his phone buzzed. His stomach rolled when he saw it was Hinata's name flashing on the screen.

 **Hinata:** morning sleeping beauty!! :) 

**Kageyama:** Hi  
**Kageyama:** Thanks for the coffee

 **Hinata:** you are welcome!!!!

 **Kageyama:** You’re texting at work again, dummy

 **Hinata:** it’s fiiiine I’m in the gym closet  
**Hinata:** also I was thinking  
**Hinata:** your mugs are very boring

 **Kageyama:** Ok…?

 **Hinata:** but I saw some REALLY COOL ones in a store nearby  
**Hinata:** let’s go get them on your next day off!!

 **Kageyama:** Mugs?  
**Kageyama:** You want to go… buy mugs?

 **Hinata:** I promise you’ll think they’re cool!!!!

 **Kageyama:** Fine  
**Kageyama:** I’m free on Thursday

 **Hinata:** Thursdayyyyy :D  
**Hinata:** I’ll send you the location!!!

Shopping for mugs wasn’t exactly what Kageyama had envisioned them doing the next time they saw each other, but to be honest he didn’t really care what they did anyway.

So, true to his word, on a windy Thursday evening he found himself gazing up at the shop’s sign that read, ‘Home Sweet Gnome,’ and there was a little cartoon gnome next to the name.

Only Hinata could pick a place like this.

“KAGEYAMAAAA!”

He turned just in time to see an orange blur tearing towards him, and managed to brace himself as Hinata barrelled into him, arms lassoing around his middle. 

“What are you doing?” Kageyama yelped in surprise.

Hinata looked up at him with a grin, his cheeks pink. “Saying hello!”

Kageyama was trying to ignore how good it felt to have Hinata’s hands pressed against his back, and gave his shoulder a jerky pat, which Hinata found hilarious. 

“You’re such a dork, Kageyama,” he laughed. “Let’s go!” 

Kageyama reluctantly let himself be dragged into the store, but as soon as they were inside Hinata dashed off. Kageyama went to grab one of the small baskets, but then Hinata came back wheeling a trolley. An ominous sign. 

“Just mugs,” Kageyama said firmly.

“C’mon Kageyama, where’s your sense of adventure?” Hinata replied, hopping up onto the trolley, and pushing off with his foot towards the first aisle.

“We’re in a homeware store,” Kageyama muttered, following Hinata. 

Kageyama found it pretty amazing just how much crap was in this place, but he enjoyed watching Hinata excitedly rush around, bringing random objects over to show him before hurrying off to find something else. With Hinata being constantly distracted, it took them a long time to eventually reach the mug section. When they finally did, Hinata tugged Kageyama over to inspect a row of particularly colourful mugs. He crouched down so he was at eye-level with them, meaning Kagayema had to bend his knees, as he stood behind Hinata. 

“Hmm, these aren’t the ones I saw last time but they’re kind of nice?” Hinata mused, picking up a yellow one.

But Kageyama was distracted by finding himself so close to Hinata, he could see every strand of his bright hair. How did it look so soft and yet manage to stay so stubbornly upright all the time?

Tentatively Kageyama reached out, and lightly skimmed the top of Hinata’s hair, his touch feather-light. But at that precise moment Hinata stood up, and his head fitted straight into Kageyama’s outstretched palm.

They stared at each other, surprised by the sudden contact, then Kageyama hastily withdrew his hand. 

“Doesn’t it ever lie flat?” He grumbled.

Hinata shook his head, looking slightly dazed.

Kageyama cleared his throat. “Didn’t you say the ones you wanted were in this aisle?”

This seemed to break Hinata from whatever trance he had been in. “Oh, I’ve just remembered where they are!” 

He dashed to the end of the aisle and started jumping up and down, pointing excitedly to one of the shelves. Kageyama wheeled the trolley over and soon found himself face to face with the most hideous mugs he’d ever seen, despite being shaped like volleyballs. 

Or maybe it was _because_ they were shaped like volleyballs.

He looked at Hinata. “No.”

Hinata’s eyes widened and he clutched at Kageyama’s shirt. “Pleeeeeease,” he whined. 

This must be Hinata’s trump card in any situation, because surely he knew how fucking cute he looked like this. Kageyama could feel his stubbornness crumbling with Hinata’s big eyes on him.

“Fine,” Kageyama scowled. “But I want the blue one.” 

“Yes!” Hinata grinned, picking up two of the mugs and cradling them close. 

They were just about to move onto the next aisle, when a voice came from behind them.

“Is that you, Kageyama?”

He turned to see two boys coming towards them who he recognised from their middle school volleyball club, though he couldn’t remember their names. Kageyama braced himself. 

“This is weird, we haven’t seen you since school,” the blond boy said, his mouth toying with an empty smile. “You still playing volleyball?”

Kageyama shook his head slightly.

“Hmm, that’s kind of surprising,” the dark-haired boy replied, leaning against a shelf. “Not that we do either. Hey, did you hear Ishida got married?”

“No, I didn’t.” 

The blond boy laughed quietly. “Kageyama, do you even care?”

Kageyama stiffened, and out of the corner of his eye saw Hinata look between them, clearly confused.

“Of course I do,” Kageyama replied awkwardly. 

The dark-haired boy raised an eyebrow. “Really? I mean, you were kind of a jerk to us all back then.”

Kageyama could feel his hands trembling. 

When he didn’t reply, his old teammate turned to Hinata. “Is he still a jerk?”

Hinata frowned. “I wouldn’t say he’s a jerk. Besides, he’s letting us get these!” He held up the mugs. 

The boys exchanged a look.

“Wait, are you two _together?_ ” The blond boy asked incredulously. 

Kageyama’s stomach clenched as he watched Hinata’s eyes widen with surprise. 

_Don’t make fun of him,_ Kageyama thought desperately. He didn’t want them thinking badly of Hinata for being associated with him. He didn’t want them to talk about Hinata, or laugh at him, they way they had with himself. 

“N-no, of course not!” Kageyama blustered.

He knew Hinata was looking at him, but Kageyama kept his eyes forward. 

“Oh,” the dark-haired boy said, turning. “Well, that figures.”

“Good luck, kid,” the other boy said to Hinata, before following his friend. “See you around, Kageyama.”

And they both left. Hinata was now looking down at the floor, seeming embarrassed.

“Come on, let’s go,” Kageyama muttered.

He pushed the cart forwards and Hinata followed at a distance, still clutching the mugs to his chest.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter!! I hope everyone enjoyed reading (´｡• ω •｡`)

**Hinata**

The sun was setting in the distance, the burnt orange dipping into a star-strewn sea of deep blue. Hinata hated how much it reminded him of stupid Kageyama. 

Hinata had called something about having stuff to do as they’d left the homestore, and managed to run off before Kageyama could try and stop him. He’d just wandered around for a while with no particular destination in mind, until he’d eventually found himself outside the dark building of the school. 

Hinata thought perhaps he’d subconsciously gravitated towards it, because normally practising on a court helped to calm him down when he was feeling upset or angry. But when he’d stepped into the gym and turned on the lights he’d just felt… empty.

So now here he was, sitting cross-legged on the grass, rolling a volleyball back and forth in front of him. Golden light was spilling out from the gym onto the ground, illuminating the daisies by his feet.

It was so stupid. Hinata _knew_ they weren’t together, that was obvious. But recently he couldn’t help hoping that maybe one day they could be. It had really felt like there was _something_ between them. Kageyama had held his hand, got all flustered when Hinata said something embarrassing, let them buy those stupid mugs, left him notes in the mornings... but had Hinata just gotten carried away with his own feelings? 

The way Kageyama had responded so violently to the idea of being with Hinata made him feel like he had. He saw again the flash of panic in Kageyama’s eyes, heard the revulsion in his voice.

Hinata groaned and lay back against the grass. He watched the flashing lights of a plane cross the evening sky, stars shimmering in the distance. He really didn’t want to go back to the apartment now, knowing the reality of how things were between them. There was no way Hinata could go on living there as normal, pretending he didn’t feel the way he did about Kageyama. 

But he also couldn’t bear the thought of never seeing those ridiculously blue walls again, never trying out one of Kageyama’s new flavours of milk or coming home to another note. Never watching another scowl appear on Kageyama’s face, or see it bloom into a rare smile.

Hinata tried to ignore the burning sensation in his eyes, and threw the volleyball straight up into the air above him.

“Hinata?”

He yelled and dropped the ball in surprise, clutching his face in pain. He heard footsteps drawing closer, but didn’t move his hands. He knew who it was.

“Are you… ok?”

“No, I’m mad at you.”

“I meant your face.”

“That’s mad at you too,” Hinata grumbled, rubbing his forehead. “How did you know I was here?”

Kageyama sat down on the grass beside him. “You didn’t come back. I figured you might be here because of the court, and the lights were on.”

There was silence for a while. Hinata gripped the volleyball harder, trying to hide his trembling hands, keeping his gaze fixed on the stars. 

“Do you want me to move out?” He asked, his throat tight.

Kageyama stared at him in alarm. “No! Of course I don’t want you to move out. Why would you think that?”

Hinata closed his eyes, preying that his voice remained steady. “I-if I’ve gotten the wrong idea about… _us_ … I don’t want to make you feel awkward, and you seemed so _grossed out_ by your friends’ suggest—’

“They’re not my friends.”

The sharpness of Kageyama’s tone took Hinata by surprise, and made him finally turn to look at him properly. Kageyama’s features were bathed in the soft light from the gym, but his expression was dark.

Hinata waited, hardly daring to breath.

Kageyama sighed. “They were right. I _was_ a jerk to them in middle school. I’m still a jerk. People annoy me and I don’t... get on with them easily. That’s why I started this whole apartment share thing in the first place.”

Hinata sat up, frowning. “But you’re not like that with me.”

“That’s because you’re… different,” Kageyama replied, awkwardly.

“Different in a good way?” Hinata hinted, his heartbeat quickening.

Kageyama looked embarrassed, his cheeks reddening. “Different in a dumbass way.” 

Hinata was wondering what this meant, when he felt a tug on his little finger. He looked down and saw Kageyama had linked theirs together. With his heart racing, Hinata hesitantly reached out, interweaving their fingers until their hands lay completely entwined. 

Hinata cleared his throat. “Well, I like you the way you are,” he said stubbornly. 

Kageyama didn’t say anything in response, but with his other hand reached into his jeans pocket and retrieved something, holding it out for Hinata to take. When he realised what it was, Hinata’s eyes widened.

The note was faded now, scrunched at the edges and more beige than orange, but the words were still legible:

_'Nice to meet you, roomie!!! These are for you!! - Hinata :)'_

It was the first note Hinata had ever written, and Kageyama, who didn’t have any photographs or personal possessions anywhere in the apartment, had kept it with him the whole time.

Hinata seemed to swell with happiness, hardly able to believe what was happening. He felt euphoric, _giddy,_ with joy and relief.

“Don’t you ever wash your jeans, Kageyama?” He grinned.

Kageyama scowled. “Of course I do, idiot, I jus—”

But he was cut off as Hinata got to his knees in front of Kageyama, cupping his face in his hands. Hinata nudged Kageyama’s nose with his own, silently asking. Kageyama’s blue eyes were wide, but he nodded, hands pulling Hinata in closer as their lips drew together.

The kiss was warm and soft, and Hinata felt like a thousand stars were bursting inside of him. He parted his lips under the gentle pressure from Kageyama, and felt the tentative tip of his tongue meet his own, sending a shiver down Hinata’s spine. Kageyama’s hands dragged slowly from Hinata’s back down to his waist, fingers splayed, as if trying to touch as much of him as possible. 

But Hinata needed even more of Kageyama, and looped his arms around his neck, bringing him even closer. Kageyama responded with a soft noise of pure _want_ in Hinata’s mouth. He ran his fingers right up into Hinata’s hair, tugging gently at the bright locks, dragging a whine from the back of Hinata’s throat. He was starting to feel light-headed and dizzy with desire, their kisses turning messy and desperate.

Finally, reluctantly, a lack of oxygen forced their lips apart with a gasp, though their foreheads remained resting against each other's, hearts racing, breathing shallow. Kageyama had his eyes closed, and Hinata could see how dark and long his eyelashes were, his lips a deep pink from being kissed so thoroughly. Hinata knew he’d never want anyone else. 

“So… can we be together?” He asked, a little shyly. 

Kageyama pressed his forehead more firmly against Hinata’s. “Obviously.”

They were silent for a while, simply taking the time to trace fingers over each other’s hands, arms, wrists, enjoying the simple pleasure of being able to touch each other like this. 

“Kageyama?”

“Hm?”

“Your place or mine?” Hinata grinned.

Kageyama stared at him, unimpressed. Then he launched forwards and grabbed Hinata in a headlock, making him squeal.

“And unpack your suitcase, it’s driving me mad,” Kageyama scowled.

“Fine, fine,” Hinata laughed, and Kageyama let go. 

They stood up together, their hands entwined.

“Our place,” Kageyama mumbled.

“Huh?

“It’s _our_ place.”

Hinata beamed at him and pressed against his chest, chasing another kiss. “Our place.”

**Kageyama**

One year later 

They’d left the windows of the apartment open to try and air out the smell of fresh paint, and a gentle summer breeze tussled the curtains. Kageyama stepped back from the wall and examined the large frame now hanging there. Behind the glass was a large mosaic made of little orange and blue squares. They’d been clearing out the closet a few weeks ago when Hinata came across a bag of all the notes they’d passed each other, claiming he’d kept it there for safekeeping and _definitely_ hadn’t just forgotten all about it. 

They’d spent a number of hours just reading through their messages, laughing over some of the things they’d said, reminiscing about the week-long feud in the beginning that had started it all. It hadn’t felt right just chucking all the notes away, so they’d decided to give them a proper place in the apartment. 

Kageyama folded his arms as he looked at the frame. It looked pretty fucking artistic to him. He then turned his gaze to Hinata, who was sat on the floor facing the opposite wall, uncharacteristically quiet as he concentrated on making his brushstrokes as neat as possible. 

Kageyama padded over and sat down beside him, smiling slightly at Hinata’s little pink tongue poking out in concentration, as he finished painting his current patch of wall.

As if sensing his boyfriend’s gaze, Hinata turned to him. “What?”

Kageyama breathed out a soft laugh, now able to see that Hinata had paint all over his cheek. He reached out, cupping Hinata’s jaw in his hand, thumb grazing over the paint. Hinata smiled and nuzzled into Kageyama’s palm. The sunlight was reflecting off the newly orange wall, illuminating Hinata and making him seem even brighter than usual. 

Kageyama drew Hinata towards him into a soft kiss. Even now, a year later, it never failed to make Kageyama’s stomach flutter, especially when Hinata sighed against his lips, mouth parting to deepen the kiss. And when they drew apart, Hinata’s eyes were dark.

“You know, Tobio…” he began, innocently. “I think I have paint under my clothes too, can you check?”

Kageyama grinned, leaning in again. “Dumbass,” he murmured against Hinata’s lips.

Hinata laughed, and then he was springing forwards into Kageyama’s arms, smiles quickly turning into more kisses.

To Kageyama, this was not an apartment anymore, it wasn’t just a collection of rooms or a place to keep his things. It was the place where he’d met Hinata and where they’d fallen in love.

It was a place they belonged together.

A place to call home.


End file.
